Violence during gay pride march in Montenegro

ASSOCIATED PRESS

PODGORICA, Montenegro -- Police have used tear gas against dozens of rock-throwing opponents of a gay pride march in Montenegro.

The violence occurred when the attackers tried to push through cordons of hundreds of police who were protecting Sunday's march in the capital of Montenegro, a staunchly conservative Balkan country.

March organizer Danijel Kalezic says the protection allowed about 150 gay activists to walk peacefully through the city of Podgorica.

Such pride marches are seen as a test of Montenegro's commitment to human rights as it seeks to join the European Union. Gay rights opponents attacked a similar march in July in the coastal town of Budva.